red beans and green tea

Saturday, April 28, 2012

The many shades of spring

So April is almost over! It is finally getting warm around here—actually it is HOT. I swear, Japan has only two seasons: summer and winter. It suddenly became summer, but then a couple days where it bounced back to winter…nothing in between really. :/ I am looking forward to warmer weather though. The cherry blossoms have come and gone (it is such a short and sweet season). Now my town is covered in bright green.

Here are some pictures from the cherry blossom season.

my neighborhood cherry blossoms

less than two weeks and they're all gone!

can you believe these are the same trees?

this is close to my house...these yellow flowers grow up to six feet tall by this river.

Last weekend my friends that had their wedding ceremony in Guam had their wedding party in Japan. This is common in Japan, but it still confuses me. The couple gets married just by applying for a marriage license, and then the ceremony and reception are just for show. It seems in Japan the dates can be further apart. I thought in America everything happened all on the same day, no?? It’s interesting to learn about other countries’ customs though. So this time they wore Japanese wedding kimonos (men wear “hakama” and women wear “uchikake”) AND western wedding attire. It is just not enough to only have one outfit in Japan. My friend who got married in Kyushu had four dress changes!

The party was very fun and it was great to see the bride and groom so happy. Like most Japanese receptions, it started off with a speech by someone close to the groom. Then the bride and groom gave a welcome speech (or maybe that came first…). Then the MC went around and interviewed people with a microphone about the bride and groom. Then the bride and groom went around to all the tables to greet the guests and there was some time to go up to their table to take pictures with them (there really isn’t a lot of time to talk with the bride and groom one-on-one, so most couples go to an after party called “nijikai” where they can relax—this of course would require another outfit change!). Then the bride and groom left to change outfits while the guests eat, drink, and chat. Then there is some entertainment: Bingo is a common party game here and there are several different prizes prepared by the bride and groom. The finale was a performance by the bride’s younger brother. It was a great experience to celebrate every part of my close friends’ wedding.

Next week we have some days off for a national vacation called “Golden Week.” Looking forward to relaxing and meeting up with people in Kansai.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

The Weekend

I had a laid-back weekend. I got a new bookshelf for my room and set it up. I think it balances out the wall that my bed is on better. It needs to be filled now though--working on that. I also got a new pillow, so I put one of the other pillow cases I made on it and my daybed is looking good. I love the marimekko fabric (pink poppies and the dark blue print with the apples). It definitely brightens my room. I'm still waiting for bed risers to complete the daybed, as well as maybe one or two more pillows. ;) I also made a picture by cutting out letters from scraps of paper and origami paper to write out "It always seems impossible until it's done," which is a quote I like by Nelson Mandela, and a felt wall decal that looks cute peeking out from behind my bookcase.

I did a bunch of cooking on Sunday to prepare for next week's lunches. I made some tofu and chicken--both turned out well. The trick I learned for cooking tofu is that you have to wrap it in a paper towel and microwave first to get rid of the water inside. Then when you fry it, it won't be all wet. I fried chicken with this seasoning I got and added fresh lemon and some sesame seeds. The trick I learned for making crispy and juicy chicken "nuggets" without deep frying them is to cover the frying pan so the chicken kind of steams while it cooks.

Today is April 1, and I saw some cherry blossoms beginning to bloom. No matter how cold it is or how long winter lasts, there is something truly magical about cherry blossom season in Japan. Yes, it comes with allergy season attached and rain, but the days that are nice are wonderful. I went for a short walk/jog around this river by my house. It has a bunch of cherry blossom trees lined up along it, so it will be very nice once they bloom all the way. There was an old man sitting out and barbecuing. That's the thing about Japan--you'll see totally random things all the time. I mean, the road along the river is concrete. And the trees he was sitting under just had branches with small buds. And it was cold. But there he was, just sitting on some tarp he laid out with a portable grill, probably waiting for his other Oji-chan friends to join him. I really like my neighborhood and I'm glad to live here.

I have a lot of creative energy lately, so I think I might start drawing again. I hope this phase doesn't end soon.

Tried a new original design

Working on my daybed

Felt wall decal and new picture

Fried chicken with lemon and sesame

Seared tofu with Japanese flavors

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Making things

I’m continuing to sew almost every day. Since my accident in February, I think it relaxes me and that is why I have been doing it so much. I think it has a cathartic effect on me and gets my mind off of things. Also, to make one sleeve, it takes about two or three hours with all the cutting and appliqué, but it’s not very difficult or complex, so I can get satisfaction out of accomplishing something. If I were to venture into something more complicated like clothing or bags maybe I wouldn’t keep up with my projects. And how many tote bags can you make/give someone anyway? I like the sleeves because they are functional but also unique. I hope I can start selling them soon.

Last night I made salmon in my toaster oven. I used a recipe that my mom and grandma use, so it reminded me of home. I couldn’t get big salmon steaks like they have in America, and almost all the filets had large bones in them, but oh well. That’s Japan for ya. I mixed Dijon mustard with mayonnaise to make the sauce, squeezed lemon on the filets and then placed lemon slices on top. Then I baked it in my toaster oven until it was tender. It didn’t taste as good as when my mom or grandma makes it but it was my first try, so I guess you could say it met my expectations.

I also made a pumpkin “salad” by microwaving a hunk of Japanese Kabocha, or pumpkin squash, and then mashing it up with some mayonnaise and a little Dijon mustard. I then added some salt, pepper, and paprika. It would’ve tasted better with some raisins thrown in, but I didn’t have them on hand.

Another recipe I came up with is a frying pan faux quiche. It is super easy and healthy! I cooked up some cabbage, spinach, and bacon in a frying pan and then added three eggs that I beat with milk. I put a lid on the frying pan and cooked it on low until the “quiche” firmed up. You could call it an omelet, but the texture was really similar to quiche! I didn’t add a pie crust or anything, so it was healthier than real quiche. Also, I didn’t have any cheese, but the egg texture tasted rich like it had cheese in it! Success! The second time I made it I added “Shin Tamanegi,” which means “new onions.” They are sweet and compliment the spring cabbage very well. I made the mistake of covering the veggies before adding the eggs and the result was them sweating too much, but it still tasted good to me. I make this dish at night and then divide it into Tupperware for my lunches. One of the downsides to living alone is you have to eat the same thing every day until you run out.

Next I want to learn how to make felted wool soap bars and how to do needle felting! I just need to figure out what supplies I need and where to get them…..

Inspiration:

Felted wool soap bars

Wool for felting

Wool roving for felting--pretty colors

Love this artist (not many pics on her website though)